• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.24 no.9
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• pp.5-11
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• 2008

Seepage induced earthern slope failures occurs in concert with meteorological events when large quantities of groundwater are channeled into slopes through infiltration. The presence of flowing groundwater in earthern slopes can induce ground failures that result in significant property damage and potential loss of life. Seepage induced earthen slope failures represent a serious problem in geotechnical engineering. This research applies existing fluid-solid numerical modeling capabilities to the study and prediction of seepage induced earthen slope failures. Study of the targeted application holds potential for much needed advances in geotechnical engineering analysis technology which could be used to design more effective engineering slope stabilization interventions.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.95-106
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• 2023

In the developing country like India, groundwater is the main sources for household, irrigation and industrial use. Its contamination poses hydro-geological and environmental concern. The hazardous waste sites such as landfills can lead to contamination of ground water. The contaminants existing at such sites can eventually find ingress down through the soil and into the groundwater in case of leakage. It is necessary to understand the process of migration of pollutants through sub-surface porous medium for avoiding health risks. On this backdrop, the present paper investigates the behavior of pollutants' migration through porous media. The laboratory experiments were carried out on a soil-column model that represents porous media. Two different types of soils (standard sand and red soil) were considered as the media. Further, two different solutes, i.e., non-reactive and reactive, were used. The experimental results are simulated through numerical modeling. The percentage variation in the experimental and numerical results is found to be in the range of 0.75- 11.23 % and 0.84 - 1.26% in case of standard sand and red soil, respectively. While a close agreement is observed in most of the breakthrough curves obtained experimentally and numerically, good agreement is seen in either result in one case.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.88 no.5
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• pp.463-480
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• 2023

The buckling-restrained braced frames with eccentric configurations (BRBF-Es) exhibit stable cyclic behavior and possess a high energy absorption capacity. Additionally, they offer architectural advantages for incorporating openings, much like Eccentrically Braced Frames (EBFs). However, studies have indicated that significant residual drifts occur in this system when subjected to earthquakes at the Maximum Considered Earthquake (MCE) hazard level. Consequently, in order to mitigate these residual drifts, it is recommended to employ self-centering systems alongside the BRBF-E system. In our current research, we propose the utilization of the Direct Displacement-Based Seismic Design method to determine the design base shear for a hybrid system that combines BRBF with an eccentric configuration and a self-centering frame. Furthermore, we present a methodology for designing the individual components of this composite system. To assess the effectiveness of this design approach, we designed 3-, 6-, and 9-story buildings equipped with the BRBF-E-SCF system and developed finite element models. These models were subjected to two sets of ground motions representing the Maximum Considered Earthquake (MCE) and Design Basis Earthquake (DBE) seismic hazard levels. The results of our study reveal that although the combined system requires a higher amount of steel material compared to the BRBF-E system, it substantially reduces residual drift. Furthermore, the combined system demonstrates satisfactory performance in terms of story drift and ductility demand.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.149-163
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• 2023

This paper presents stability evaluation of unlined tunnels with semi-circular arch and straight sides (SASS) driven in non-homogeneous and anisotropic undrained clay. Numerical analysis has been conducted based on lower bound finite element limit analysis with second order cone programming under plane strain condition. The solutions will be used for the assessment of stability of unlined semi-circular arch tunnels and tunnels in which semi-circular roof is supported over rectangular/square sections. The stability charts have been generated in terms of a non-dimensional factor considering linear variation in undrained anisotropic strength for normally consolidated and lightly over consolidated clay with depth, and constant undrained anisotropic strength for heavily over-consolidated clay across the depth. The effect of normalized surcharge pressure on ground surface, non-homogeneity and anisotropy of clay, tunnel cover to width ratio and height to width ratio of tunnel on the stability factor and associated zone of shear failure at yielding have been examined and discussed. The geometry of tunnel in terms of shape and size, and non-homogeneity and anisotropy in undrained strength of clay has been observed to influence significantly the stability of unlined SASS tunnels.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.237-244
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• 2023

This study analyzes the seismic response of traffic light poles, considering soil-foundation effects through nonlinear static and time history analyses. Two poles are investigated, uni-directional and bi-directional, each with 9 m mast arms. Finite element models incorporate the poles, soil, and concrete foundations for analysis. Results show that the initial stiffness of the traffic light poles decreases by approximately 38% due to soil effects, and the drift ratio at which their nonlinear behavior occurs is 77% of scenarios without considering soil effects. The maximum acceleration response increases by about 82% for uni-directional poles and 73% for bi-directional poles, while displacement response increases by approximately 10% for uni-directional and 16% for bi-directional poles when considering soil-foundation effects. Additionally, increasing ground motion intensity reduces soil restraints, making significant rotational displacement the dominant response mechanism over flexural displacement for the traffic light poles. These findings underscore the importance of considering soil-foundation interactions in analyzing the seismic behavior of traffic light poles and provide valuable insights to enhance their seismic resilience and safety.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.31-48
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• 2024

To stabilize the excavations in urban area, soil anchorage is among the very common methods in geotechnical engineering. A more efficient deformation analysis can potentially lead to cost-effective and safer designs. To this end, a total of 116 three-dimensional (3D) finite element (FE) models of a deep excavation supported by tie-back wall system were analyzed in this study. An initial validation was conducted through examination of the results against the Texas A&M excavation cases. After the validation step, an extensive parametric study was carried out to cover significant design parameters of tie-back wall system in deep excavations. The numerical results indicated that the maximum horizontal displacement values of the wall (δ_hm) and maximum surface settlement (δ_vm) increase by an increase in the value of ground anchors inclination relative to the horizon. Additionally, a change in the wall embedment depth was found to be contributing more to δ_vm than to δ_hm. Based on the 3D FE analysis results, two simple equations are proposed to estimate excavation deformations for different scenarios in which the geometric configuration parameters are taken into account. The model proposed in this study can help the engineers to have a better understanding of the behavior of such systems.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.277-293
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• 2024

Shored Mechanically Stabilized Earth (SMSE) walls are types of soil retaining structures that increase soil stability under static and dynamic loads. The damage caused by an earthquake can be determined by evaluating the probabilistic seismic response of SMSE walls. This study aimed to assess the seismic performance of SMSE walls and provide fragility curves for evaluating failure levels. The generated fragility curves can help to improve the seismic performance of these walls through assessing and controlling variables like backfill surface settlement, lateral deformation of facing, and permanent relocation of the wall. A parametric study was performed based on a non-linear elastoplastic constitutive model known as the hardening soil model with small-strain stiffness, HSsmall. The analyses were conducted using PLAXIS 2D, a Finite Element Method (FEM) program, under plane-strain conditions to study the effect of the number of geogrid layers and the axial stiffness of geogrids on the performance of SMSE walls. In this study, three areas of damage (minor, moderate, and severe) were observed and, in all cases, the wall has not completely entered the stage of destruction. For the base model (Model A), at the highest ground acceleration coefficient (1 g), in the moderate damage state, the fragility probability was 76%. These values were 62%, and 54%, respectively, by increasing the number of geogrids (Model B) and increasing the geogrid stiffness (Model C). Meanwhile, the fragility values were 99%, 98%, and 97%, respectively in the case of minor damage. Notably, the probability of complete destruction was zero percent in all models.

• Journal of Auto-vehicle Safety Association
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.12-20
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• 2024

Side impact with MDB (moving deformable barrier) is common in side crash test protocols around the globe, most of which are quite similar to that of US NCAP side impact protocol but IIHS side impact protocol is considered to be the most harsh one due to the MDB's weight and impact speed. In this study US NCAP side impact and IIHS side impact test conditions are compared with respect to delta-V (impulse of the test vehicle), roll speed, and yaw speed as well as survival space (the smallest distance between the front driver seat cushion center to B pillar after the test). Error factors (friction between tire and ground, tolerance of vertical and longitudinal position of the MDB with respect to the test vehicle), which are resident in the test protocol is studied with respect to the global vehicle behavior (delta-V, roll, yaw) as well as survival space.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.85-92
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• 2011

The dynamic behavior of piles becomes very complex due to soil-pile dynamic interaction, soil non-linearity, resonance phenomena of soil-pile system and so on. Therefore, the proper numerical simulation of the pile behavior needs much effort and calculation time. In this research, a new modeling method, which can be applied to the conventional finite difference analysis program FLAC 3D, was developed to reduce the calculation time. The soil domain in this method is divided into a near-field region and a far-field region, which is not influenced by the soil-pile dynamic interaction. Then, the ground motion of the far-field is applied to the boundaries of the near-field instead of modeling the far-field region as finite meshes. In addition, the soil non-linearity behavior is modeled by using the hysteretic damping model, which determines the soil tangent modulus as a function of shear strain and the interface element was applied to simulate the separation and slip between the soil and pile. The proposed method reduced the calculation time by as much as one third compared with a usual modeling method and maintained the accuracy of the calculated results. The calculated results by the proposed method showed a good agreement with the prototype pile behavior, which was obtained by applying a similitude law to the 1-g shaking table test results.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.17-24
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• 2019

The purpose of this study is to understand the characteristics of bearing capacity of shallow foundation on the grounds. We made a comparative study of existing bearing capacity theory, based on the three-dimensional finite element analysis with a variety of conditions such as ground condition, foundation scale and foundation shape. In the finite element analysis, the ultimate bearing capacity showed a gradual convergence in the form of exponential function or logarithm function according to the foundation scale. Although the shear strength increased, the bearing capacity tended not to increase but change linearly. In the results of comparative study of existing bearing capacity theory, bearing capacity ratio ($q_{u(FEA)}/q_{u(theory)}$) of pure sand has the outcome closest to those of the Terzaghi method. Pure clay turned out to be about 0.4~0.6 while normal soil was changed in a range of 0.3~1.3. As shear strength is increased, the results turned out to be less than 1.0. Bearing capacity ratio ($q_u/q_{u(1.0)}$), normalized at 1.0m bearing capacity, was about 35%, 15% and 5% of theoretical formula under the condition of ${\phi}=25^{\circ}$, $30^{\circ}$ and $35^{\circ}$ of pure sand; no scale effect was found with pure clay and the normal soil with lower soil strength level showed less than 10% of the theoretical formula of pure sand. Bearing capacity ratio of each case, in accordance with, the shear strength increase, was largely influenced by the internal friction angle. Shape factor of bearing capacity ratios classified by foundation shapes have different results according to the shapes; the shape factor of circular foundation is 1.50, square foundation is 1.30, rectangular and continuous foundations are 1.1~1.0.